MK Dons have completed the loan signing of England youth international Louie Barry.
Barry, 19, joins from Aston Villa and will spend the 2022/23 campaign at Stadium MK.
The winger, who spent time with West Bromwich Albion and Barcelona as a youngster before moving to Villa Park, has 24 career games to date, including 16 while on loan at Swindon Town last season.
During his 16-game spell with the Robins, Barry scored six goals and provided one assist, helping the Wiltshire club reach the League Two Play-Offs – he averaged just shy of one goal contribution per appearance.
“I’m very pleased to be here,” Barry said in his first interview with iFollow MK Dons. “I spoke with the Gaffer and he sold it to me. I had a lot of interest this summer but this move really suits me so I went with my gut instinct and I’m really excited it’s all come together.
“I was very pleased with how things went with Swindon. I needed to do well there and the positive experiences help me come here with confidence and hopefully I can put that into my time here at MK Dons to help us push on.
“I spoke with Kaine (Kesler Hayden) who was here last season – we had the same route. It worked well for Kaine and while that doesn’t necessarily mean it will work for me, it does paint a good picture for me as to what I can achieve.
“I am just really excited to get to work. I am looking forward to enjoying my football here in front of the fans and hopefully I can help the team achieve its aims.”
Born in Sutton Coldfield, Barry began his career with West Bromwich Albion. He featured just once for their Under-23s in the Papa John’s Trophy before joining Barcelona in July 2019, signing a three-year deal with the Spanish giants and becoming the first British player to join their Academy.
The winger spent six months in Spain before returning to the UK with Aston Villa, joining the Midlands club for an undisclosed fee. He immediately became a regular for their Under-23s side.
Barry was handed his senior debut by Villa in January 2021 for their Emirates FA Cup tie with Liverpool and he marked the occasion with a goal – a strike that was voted Goal of the Round by BBC Sport readers and earned praise from Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp.
At the start of last season, the attacker completed a loan move to Ipswich Town but was limited to just seven appearances for the Tractor Boys. He then joined Swindon Town in January and made a real impact for the Robins, scoring six goals and providing one assist in 16 appearances as the Wiltshire side reached the League Two Play-Offs.
Barry is also an England youth international and, to date, has 25 caps to his name across the Under-15s, Under-16s, Under-17s and Under-18s age groups.
Sporting Director Liam Sweeting said: “Louie is an exciting attacking player that we have watched whilst playing Premier League 2 football for Aston Villa Under-23s and through his loan spells at Ipswich Town and, most recently, Swindon Town.
“He fits the type of player Liam is looking for in this position as he runs in behind, attacks the back post and is a real goal threat.
“He is very much on the upward curve and is another good pick up for us, utilising the loan market positively, with someone who has had successful experience already in the EFL. I am looking forward to his progress continuing with us here at MK Dons.”
Head Coach Liam Manning added: “Louie is an exciting player who has had an interesting career journey already, despite his young age. He has a number of experiences and comes here on the back of a successful spell at Swindon Town last season.
“He has some excellent attributes which will compliment our team well. His job now is to work alongside the coaches to produce high-quality moments consistently in order to contribute to the team’s goals.”
